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Archive for October, 2013

In this series, we’ll look deeper into some of the projects on Behance.net that were especially admired in our community.Ryan MacEachern is a Bristol, UK based design student. His works include a project featured in the curated Branding gallery, as well as an innovative take on the bookmark. We spoke with him about his recent project, “food x design”, an infographic tracing his eating habits over two weeks.

1) What was your inspiration for this project?I’m currently studying Graphic Design and was an assignment to collect a weeks worth of data on a personal habit and then create an infographic poster. My biggest inspiration while doing this was a project by Peter Ørntoft called “Information Graphics in Context” that I had seen years ago on Behance. I was astounded by the simple concept and striking visuals and knew I wouldn’t be happy creating a vector based solution if I were to create an infographic myself. So, years later and working on this assignment, it immediately struck me to use actual food to chart my food intake. To my surprise, I couldn’t find any projects online that had used this before.

2) Can you describe your process in creating this project?I knew I wanted to track my food intake and wanted to create a photographic solution. I briefly explored digital, but it was soon apparent the photographic idea stood out and communicated information more effectively.
I had just started a low carbohydrate diet that was very dull and boring in appearance and considered stopping the diet in order to create a more colorful and varied project. Ultimately, I decided to use the food simply as a visual aid and didn’t directly link it to my actual consumed food.
I’m a capable photographer, but felt overwhelmed by the task ahead of me—I did some test shoots using natural light and the photos needed extensive post-production work. Luckily, a friend was able to help me get ahold of some studio lights and I set them up in my living room. I also spent around £60 on food, which about 2 weeks worth of food on a student’s budget, so I made sure it didn’t go to waste. It was very strange cooking a whole chicken at 3 a.m. just to take photos of it.

3) Did you expect it to be as popular as it’s been on The Behance Network?Loads of blogs have picked it up and I’m getting a steady flow of followers on Behance, but I really didn’t expect it to get such immediate attention. I thought the work was good and nice to look at, but I wasn’t so sure other people would be able to see how much work went into it I’m really glad people like it, Im surprised at how extensive the behance community is I have had people follow me from all over the world which really is a great feeling.

4) Did you go through many versions and iterations before coming up with these final pieces?This project has two main components: the visual, which in this case is a graph or pie chart, and typography, which communicates all the data and helps the flow. It was challenging to balance them both. Once I chose a font, my next challenge was to adjust lines and labeling to ensure the project wasn’t too crowded with text.

5) Do you feel that this project is “done,” or is there anything you’d like to improve on or change in the future?The assignment only lasted two weeks, so I’m not sure I worked out all the kinks in the design. I’d like to return to the project soon and make it more extensive, covering other areas, like weight. I’d also like to work more on the coloring.

From studios to cubicles, creative work can come from anywhere. In this series, we’ll be taking a peek at some Behancers’ workspaces. We asked Twitter followers to send us a picture of their workspace one Wednesday. Here’s a roundup of some of our favorite #WorkspaceWednesday images–click the image below to view!

This week, we want to feature one of our favorite upcoming events in London, Ontario. They’re going all out to make an awesome event, even down to making a beautiful website to direct participants to. Why is this site so important? First, it’s a simple URL (http://supportlondontalent.ca) they can promote on social media (or anywhere, for that matter!). Up front, they explain what they’re doing: “A Night For Professionals To Connect And Get Feedback On Their Creative Work.” As you scroll through, you’ll notice they outline everything about the night, including date, time, location (with a map!), admission (which will be donated to charity!), companies attending, and sponsors! Simply put, it’s everything you need to know in one place AND it looks great. Congrats to the organizers and we hope the event is great!

Logging into Behance today, you may have noticed something different. Our team has worked tirelessly to bring you some awesome new things, particularly an updated Activity Feed free of clutter and new Bell Notifications.

The Activity Feed now shows the goings on of the creatives you follow on Behance–what they’re working on (WIPS), projects they’re publishing, collections they’re creating, and work they’re appreciating–while removing the clutter. What comes forward is the work from talented creatives.

So, where did those notifications on the right side go? On the top left, of course! The new Bell Notifications will show you your new Followers and when you work gains an appreciation, comment, or is added to a collection.

We’re super excited to see these new changes and hope you all really love them!